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Wind Turbines

Arklow, Ireland

The first stage of the world's largest wind farm opened in June 2004. Driven by the advanced 3.6MW turbine developed by GE Energy, the facility's seven turbines deliver an impressive 25MW.

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• Customer stories

  In 2004, the Arklow Offshore Wind Power Plant, the world's first offshore project to deploy giant wind turbines in excess of 3 megawatts, began using Ireland's clean and abundant winds to fuel new electrical capacity for the area.

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• Interview with Alexis Billet

  

  Alexis Billet, site manager for the Arklow wind farm, speaks about his work in Ireland.

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  • Known for centuries as a place to avoid because of its sudden, shallow water, the Arklow Bank trapped many ships over the years. Today it is capturing more than just the wind as Ireland envisions a future where this 25MW farm of just seven turbines expands to produce over 500MW. It will supply Ireland with a significant supply of its growing electrical demand, providing an emissions-free alternative to other forms of electrical generation.
  • GE is helping to bring this power to the people of Ireland. Working in partnership with Airtricity, GE installed seven 3.6MW turbines, then the largest offshore wind turbine available, on the Arklow Bank. These 30-story turbines, as a group, produce 25MW which is enough electricity to power 16,000 households across Ireland.
  • In 2003, GE sold more than twice as many wind turbines in the U.S. as its nearest competitor.
  • A wind farm with 20 of GE's largest turbines will, in each year of operation, reduce greenhouse gas emissions by an amount equal to keeping 36,000 cars off the road.
  • A 100 MW wind farm will, over the course of its life, displace the need for nearly 1 million tons of coal, or 600 billion cubic meters of natural gas.
  • Through the use of GE wind turbines, 12.5 million tons of greenhouse gases (GHG) are not emitted each year, which is roughly equal to keeping more than 2.5 million cars off the road each year or planting about 3.4 million acres of forest.This reduction in emissions is also greater than GE's own annual GHG emissions worldwide. GE wind turbines provide enough electricity annually to power about 17 million U.S. households. The amount of power produced by GE wind turbines is equal to more than 9 million barrels of oil each year.